Forty Cleveland civic leaders spent a week in Israel in July, as part of a new Jewish Federation of Cleveland trip, where they got a sense of the country and issues shared by Northeast Ohio and Israeli communities.

Jewish Cleveland’s Emily Friedman is participating in Onward Israel, a summer internship program supported by the Jewish Federation of Cleveland. She’s interning in Tel Aviv at Daystage, a discovery platform that enables musicians to gain more exposure and get booked.

Forty of Cleveland’s esteemed civic leaders are in Israel on the Thomas and Joann Adler Civic Leaders Israel Mission. This new biennial mission launched by the Adlers of Shaker Heights was established through an endowment at the Jewish Federation of Cleveland. The purpose is to expose Cleveland leadership to Israel’s innovative approaches to economic and community development, education and support of at-risk and disadvantaged populations, and to create opportunities for partnership with each other and Israeli counterparts.

Rachel Lieberman just returned to Cleveland after nine months in Israel. She was volunteering through Masa Israel, a post-college service program, part of I-Connect, an initiative of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland. Rachel chronicled her journey with Masa throughout her time there. Read about her Israeli experience and discover the adventures she had.